Be Strong!

http://dawn.com/2012/10/10/malala-yousufzai-sok-daa/

Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar of Islamabad, Pakistan, spoke to CNN's Christiane Amanpour two days after Malala Yousufzai, 14, was gunned down as she headed home from school in Pakistan's conservative Swat Valley. The girl was in critical condition Thursday at a military hospital outside Islamabad after surgeons removed a bullet lodged in her neck. Malala is suffering from severe cerebral edema, or swelling of the brain

Pakistani authorities offered additional protection prior to the shooting, but Malala's family had turned it down.

When Taliban gunmen stopped the van carrying Malala and two other girls Tuesday, they asked which one was Malala Yousufzai. When the girls pointed her out, the men fired, striking all three girls. The two others were not seriously injured in the attack.

A day later, police took the van driver and another person into custody for questioning. They said they had identified the culprits, but had been arrested.

The Taliban have claimed responsibility for targeting Malala, who enraged the militant group by writing about her daily battle with extremists who used fear and intimidation to force girls to stay at home instead of going to school. Malala's online writing earned her Pakistan's first National Peace Prize in November. The Taliban have vowed to kill the teenager if she survives.
"That's absolutely wrong, and propaganda of media," the group said. "Malala is targeted because of her pioneer role in preaching secularism and so-called enlightened moderation."

The Taliban accused Malala of "playing a vital role in bucking up" the Pakistani government and "inviting Muslims to hate mujahedeen."

The Taliban denied targeting the teen activist because of her demands for an education.

The singer Madonna said, during a Wednesday night concert in Los Angeles, that Malala's story made her cry and exclaimed, "Support education! Support women!" As she performed a striptease, Madonna "turned her back to the audience to reveal the name 'Malala' stenciled across it," according to The Hollywood Reporter.

"This song is for you, Malala," she said, and then sang "Human Nature."



http://www.cnn.com/2012/10/11/world/asia/pakistan-teen-activist-attack/index.html?hpt=wo_c1